One of the world’s largest dating sites puts an end to subscription revenue pilferage

CLIENT

A leading online dating site needed to prevent non-paying customers from using its service.

CHALLENGE

The online dating industry has grown considerably since its beginning in the mid-1990s. Dating websites generate a significant portion of their revenues by charging membership fees to users who wish to contact other users. Typically, users are allowed to upload their pictures, personal descriptions and dating preferences at no charge.

If they wish to contact other members, however, they are usually required to pay subscription fees. Users would often bypass the payment requirement by disguising their contact information in their profiles in ways that website computer algorithms did not recognize. For example, a user might include the line, “I am Mary, I live in NV, I am 26, I am hot, mail me,” to convey the email address, MaryNV26@hotmail.com.

THE IIMI SOLUTION

IIMI assembled a team to examine each user profile manually. The team was trained on western cultural norms, language modes, and specific language used within various demographic groups. To keep client costs low, IIMI cross-trained the team on other projects. This provided the flexibility to accommodate the dating site’s seasonal volume spikes, for example, during the weeks leading up to Valentines Day, when volume normally increases 5-6 times, and declines rapidly shortly thereafter. IIMI was also tasked with removing profanity, unacceptable photographs, and any other content that did not meet the site’s standards and terms of use.

BUSINESS IMPACT

After hiring IIMI, the dating site quickly ended the practice of non-paying users inserting contact information surreptitiously, along with the resulting revenue losses. Because of IIMI’s flexible workforce approach, the client was able to manage seasonal volume spikes affordably, thereby enhancing ROI. IIMI also helped the client eliminate objectionable content to protect its reputation and image.

With the help of IIMI, the client: • Achieved increased flexibility at lower cost • Reduced average subscriber upload time by 2/3, from one to days to 8 hours • Increased revenue and profit by reducing revenue leakage • Provided an enhanced user experience, enabling the company to maintain its industry leadership

ABOUT IIMI

With corporate headquarters in the US, a marketing office in Singapore, and eight service locations in Asia, IIMI has been a worldwide leader in BPO services since 1996. IIMI has 3500 full-time employees and can manage virtually any labor-intensive data entry and conversion processes, financial and accounting services, and much more, offsite, at a fraction of the cost of doing the work in-house.